Tax Reforms, Rule of Law and Separation of Powers

some Reflections on the Dysfunctional Performance of Republican Powers in Tax Matters

Abstract

This paper aims to demonstrate the occurrence of violations of the principles of the Rule of Law and the separation of Powers caused in the context of the production of normative acts issued by the Executive, Legislative and Judiciary Powers in the tax sphere. Such acts implied hypertrophy of the Executive with regard to the creation, interpretation and application of normative statements in this field of legal discipline and, furthermore, revealed disregard on the part of this power for judicial decisions that are unfavorable to it. In relation to the Legislative and the Judiciary, unconstitutional actions were also verified on the part of both, mainly due to the fact that the first failed to do what was due to him and the second did what he was prohibited from doing. The results of all this are the loss of the balance point between powers, the undue expansion of the area of action of the power to tax and the undue restriction on individual rights and guarantees.